Be My Friend?
by asukann
Summary: Sasuke's raped and gone, mentally. Naruto's struggling to get him back. The rookie nine is in shambles. There's just that lurking shadow that is haunting them. And even Kyuubi's afraid.
1. Chapter 1

**this is a...i duno...story that i suddenly wanted to post.**

**sorry to the other readers of my fics. i've got a horrible - and i mean _HORRIBLE_ - writer's block that i can't seem to get over... either way, it'll be for you guys and any other ppl out dere and--**

**i want to thank my mom and dad and granmama and bro and sis and cuz and aunts and uncles and--**

**I think dats all.**

**disclaimers apply.**

**dozo.**

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**Be My Friend?**

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****CHAP ONE**

It had been a peaceful enough day. There were no missions, no errands and no jobs for him to do. Orochimaru was dead, Sound was gone, and the Akatsuki had been disbanded. Itachi was dead, though killed not by Sasuke, and peace seemed to finally catch up on Konoha. Much of the old wounds were gone, itchy scars of memories now, still visible but carefully cared for and steadily healing. And to top all these off, it was October 10th, his birthday and the day of Sasuke's discharge from hospital.

Uzumaki Naruto, newly made other 2nd captain of the ANBU, aspiring Hokage and mellowed out prankster and loudmouth, grinned widely at the raven before him. He was really happy that day. Nothing was able to tear the grin that had apparently attached itself to his face. He was finally turning nineteen, and it was really the best birthday present that he could get with his best friend's discharge from the bleary white building known as the hospital. It felt to him like a dream come true.

"Are you ready to go?" he asked the nervous Uchiha. The teen gave a small nod and threw in a shy smile for his rival turned best friend. The blonde returned the smile and held out a hand.

Without the slightest bit of hesitance, Sasuke took it.

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In a house quite a distance from the hospital, a few dozen nins bustled around, packing things or putting up decorations for the owner of a certain house. It was meant to be a surprise for the person's special day and a 'Welcome Back' party for another. Now, all that was left was a cake…

The young woman stood quietly before the tombstones of her teammate and cousin. She offered a silent prayer and placed the bouquet of flowers on the cold slab of concrete. She smiled softly at the thought of them. Although both had said nothing much, both had been her strong and silent guardians of life; always there when she needed them. Her other teammate, her last, and most boisterous guardian, was now in the institute for the mentally unstable.

A silent tear fell from her pale eyes as she thought of him. She wasn't truly alone. Not yet.

She abruptly brushed the tear away. She wasn't weak anymore. She was a young woman who was able to protect her self anytime – a reliable kunoichi and medic nin when needed. A light breeze lifted her dark tresses from her face as she let out a dazzling smile to the world. She wasn't ready to give in to the despair just yet!

Besides, she wanted to attend a _very_ important party.

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Naruto tugged Sasuke closer to himself at the quiet glares he was getting. He didn't really care about the villagers' silent hatred and suspicion towards him – all he cared about then was his friend's increasing whimpers of fright. Couldn't they see that Sasuke was _terrified_ of their dark looks? Were they _that_ blind to their hate not to notice it? Didn't they bloody _care_?

The blonde clutched the cold hand tighter. He turned slightly to look at the pale face peeking out from under the dark hood of the sweatshirt. Pale, pink lips were pressed into a tight, tense line and large, dark eyes glittered fiercely with determinedly kept tears. Naruto gave the raven behind him a warm and assuring smile, hoping that it would be enough to melt the cold fear in his heart for a while. Naruto could clearly see that Sasuke was on the verge of hyperventilating and was afraid of a relapse. It had taken him a whole month to coax his best friend into talking to him again – without screaming bloody murder every time he _looked_ at someone – since that incident and it wasn't something Naruto chose to remember.

"It's alright Sasuke. We're almost there," he tried to calm both Sasuke's nerves as well as his own, "A few more blocks and we're there."

The last hundred metres to his house felt longer than the last Konoha's Sports Day; he could still remember the day well enough – he had had to go to the bathroom for an urgent business involving his stomach during the whole event (1) – and he wasn't particularly eager to relive it. He felt a large weight leave him as he turned the lock to his house and swung open the door. Sweet, calm silence waited inside. Knowing that Sasuke hated the dark, Naruto switched the lights on before he closed the door.

"**_Surprise!!_**" a few dozen voices chorused suddenly to the two teens. Naruto could only gawp at the smiling faces that looked his way. A banner above the small crowd read quite simply, 'Happy 19th Birthday, Naruto!' and 'Welcome Back, Sasuke!' Before Naruto could start feeling the warmth growing deep inside him, however, he heard a small 'eep!' coming from the shorter raven behind him. He spun around just in time to catch the teen's limp form.

At the crowd's awkward silence, he grinned sheepishly and rubbed the back of his head. "Eh-heh…he fainted…"

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The party lasted throughout the night, though with quiet merry-making – they didn't want Naruto to have a full complaint by the neighbours the day right after his birthday, after all. They also didn't want to disturb Sasuke, who was curled up and sleeping soundly with his head on Naruto's lap despite all the talking around him. He didn't even wake when Kakashi tousled his dark locks almost fondly.

"Hm…just like a little kid, ne, Naruto-kun?" the silver-haired jounin remarked lightly about Sasuke's current condition. Naruto only gave his ex-sensei a smile. He played absently with the tousled locks on his lap and glanced at the teen's face. Any sign of nervousness was gone and all that shone from the face was peace and innocence. The smile on the blonde's face tugged wider. He could still remember back when they were genins, when Sasuke still slept with a frown on his face. He couldn't make up his mind which one he preferred.

"Yeah, he's just like a kid…" Naruto agreed quietly. He looked up at the nins sitting around him, either on his few chairs or – mostly – on the floor. He was sitting on the floor beside a drunk Ino who was trying to kiss Shikamaru – yes, they were in a relationship now – and leaning against his only sofa in the house. On the sofa, Hinata and Tenten sat cross-legged and giggling like little girls – they had become the best of friends ever since that incident, while Sakura and Lee sat across Naruto, looking shy and holding hands like the new couple they were. Kakashi sat beside them, either disturbing the two teens or harassing his boyfriend Iruka. Apparently, Kakashi had found out his preference to males rather than females and had confessed to his feelings to Iruka soon after that incident. He had realized again how fragile a human's life was and treasured everyone around him more so now – though reading and watching his favourite Icha Icha series still came as one of his top priorities.

"So you have to stay with him from now on, Naruto?" Kurenai was asking. She sat just off to Sasuke's side. Shizune sat beside her and Tsunade – who was already drunk and still in a drinking contest with her old teammate, Jiraiya – sat on one of the two hard-back chairs at his small dining table. The other chair was taken by the said frog sannin. Just afore them, a group of familiar jounins sat in the kitchen, deep in conversation about what Naruto could distinctly hear was about how a certain child's game should be played. The group consisted mostly of the team leader's jounins – mainly, Gai, Kurenai, Asuma and Tsunade's two personal jounin helpers Genma and Raidou. It was obvious all were drunk. To add to the litter of people, Chouji was out-cold and dead-drunk on the floor of his living room near his front door. It was really a wonder how the small apartment wasn't bursting with sound right then.

"Hai…" Naruto answered the question after a moment of quiet contemplating and feeling very lucky he had such good friends. He licked slightly dry lips as he continued, "The doctor, uh, Tsunade, said he's still unstable…may have a relapse if pushed to hard, you know? And it may be possible that he would still have repercussions of that day…like a mental scar that may never heal." – a grin split from his face even as his eyes betrayed the bitterness in him – "I'll have to take care of him now. He wouldn't be able to really do so in the condition he is now. He seems so fragile… Ironic, eh, how the high and mighty Uchiha Sasuke could easily be brought crashing down in a mere night?"

The crowd around him – or those who had been listening and were sober enough to do so – grew thoughtful awhile. Naruto had easily pulled on a tiny string that slowly unraveled its ugly truth to them. It made them think how a supposedly innocent mission to scout an abandoned mansion could tumble out of control into a frightening night of unexplainable murders so garish that it left the two trained ANBUs left alive that had witnessed it, insane or on the verge of it. Naruto felt selfish each time he thought of his befallen friends and felt relief that he had not suffered their same fate. Perhaps it was just his good fortune to have fallen unconscious early in the mission. The blonde ANBU started when Sasuke suddenly clutched his pale fingers tight against the other teen's pants.

"Ne, Sasuke, you alright?" Naruto asked in worry when he saw his friend's terrified and sweat-slicked face. His face seemed to pale for Naruto's liking and he seemed locked in a nightmare. Naruto frowned further in worry at the teen's whimper. "Sasuke?"

"What's wrong with him?" Kakashi asked with the same anxiety as his former student. Almost everyone in the house had their attention on the two mains of the party. Naruto was bent over the raven, trying to soothe the teen of this nightmare he might have. The blonde was getting genuinely worried. Sasuke hadn't had such a strong nightmare since the first time he came back from the fateful mission. And to say that Naruto was scared out of his wits would be to lie.

"Sasuke!" Naruto tried to shake the teen awake as he let out a small scream and curled up further on himself. He absently pushed the damp locks of ebony of the paler teen's brow. As his fingers brushed the cold skin, he suddenly found himself in the dark mansion again.

Where _that incident_ took place; where Kiba went insane and Sasuke almost following as well; and where Neji and Shino lost their lives.

**…to be continued…** **

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(1) Naruto wanted to ahem, excrete urgently – or shit, in simple layman terms that we like to use – during the Konoha sports festival but his team wouldn't let him go do it, and he had loads of things stopping him. Imagine not being able to _shit_ despite being badly in need of the release! I would personally hate that…

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****yahr. end areadi.**

**BLEARGH.**

**i using singlish ahr...u noe wad singlish? its xinjiapo english. dun play play, hor...**

**dis wan is random ting i wan to rite. im bored rite now and tink im content being mean. coz--**

**itulah aper yang aku ini kebetulan nyer...**

**and its okay if you did not understand dat. it was as sed, random. i still wan use singlish. haiz. dis short story lahr. lazy wan continue hor. but i try update fast fast hor. cause now i got writer's block, ahr... so sorie ah.**

**:watcheva:**


	2. Chapter 2

**A re-write. Not update.**

**Disclaimers apply, though. **

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**Be My Friend ?**

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**CHAP TWO**

Naruto hadn't expected to appear there or anywhere _outside_ right then. After all, hadn't he been _in his house_ with a party specially thrown for him? Hadn't he just been surrounded by his closest people with Sasuke on his lap? Wait…that's right; Sasuke was having a nightmare. He had touched his friend's brow and then—

He started as a loud cry reached his ears. Spinning around, his sharp ANBU senses kicking in and giving him keener, adrenaline senses, he crouched low for an oncoming attack. Needless to say, he was quite shocked when he saw himself on the ground, bleeding from his forehead. He recognized the trainee squad leader band on his arm and gasped at the familiarity of the whole thing. He was back to the time when _that_ incident happened! When– When—

"What the hells' going on?!" came Kiba's bewildered voice. Naruto started again at the _coherent_ words that Kiba was _yelling_. It had been too long since the brunette had done any such thing, anyway, and it gave Naruto a deep pang of sadness to think about it. He felt it even more so as a few yips, barks and growls indicated that Kiba's large dog Akamaru was there as well.

"Naruto!" another familiar voice called his name. The said blonde whipped his head to the voice. He wanted so badly then to see the owner of the voice in his glory; not as the broken doll he was now. He caught sight of those sultry orbs, so different from the duller, more childish ones now, as their owner crouched before his body, protecting him against an invisible enemy.

"What_is_ that?" Neji's quiet voice asked the question in everyone's mind. If the situation hadn't seemed so dark and tense, Naruto was sure he would have hugged the older teen then, despite the obvious anger and reluctant blushes. And Shino was there as well! He really felt like crying. Here he thought his fallen comrades were dead, but they were right before him, alive and kicking! Then again, it did not explain why he was, at that moment, only floating slightly above them, as though he were a spectral just there for the show. Could it be that he was in the past? Or even more possibly, in a flashback? But who—

Naruto's train of thought crashed into a brick wall when Shino suddenly grabbed his head and started flailing. His rarely heard voice could be heard plainly then in the form of pained cries. Before his other ANBU teammates could react, though, he went silent and dropped his arms as suddenly as he had begun to flail. The most unexpected thing happened after that; something that would imprint itself so clearly in Naruto's mind like a very bad dream.

Aburame Shino, the bug boy of the infamous rookie nine, exploded.

The scream of horror that threatened to rip out Naruto's throat somehow choked on itself as his friend's blood coated him in splatters. Naruto's mind was reeling. Was this really what happened that night? He couldn't have known; he had been unconscious throughout the whole incident. He had come to, covered in another's blood and with a huge headache. Perhaps it was the reason why he couldn't find Neji or Shino after that; or why Kiba had gone insane, and Sasuke scared shitless about something. He remembered clearly through the throbbing headache that he had had to knock the Uchiha out and use Akamaru's – bodiless – head to bring both ANBU back to Konoha—

Once again, he found himself being jerked out his thoughts when Kiba started yelling almost hysterically. The dog boy wasn't one to be calm in such situations in the first place, and right then, he was rushing forward recklessly as usual to whatever remains there were of his friend. Naruto had to turn away slightly at the sight of the mangled body of what used to be Shino. He cursed Kiba silently. _Don't touch him, Dog Boy! Don't touch it…_

Naruto almost sighed in relief when Sasuke, the ever-sensible 2nd captain, immediately grabbed for the brunette. Although the other teen struggled and cried against Sasuke's hold, the raven held him still. Uncharacteristically, the Ice Prince of Konoha – also known as Uchiha-prick-Sasuke – wrapped his arms protectively around the crying teen and looked at the disoriented Neji.

"Stay close," he ordered the older boy casually and gave another wordless order that only Neji seemed to know. Naruto envied Sasuke at times how he was able to do such a thing. It was said that all Uchiha had that ability, thus making them very reliable in ambush attacks and battles. Silence was precious in such cases and a silent – properly understood – order was the best. It was what propelled Sasuke to 2nd captain of the ANBU; that, and the small fact that the raven had grown more reliable and less of a brat since returning from Sound.

"Sasuke-san—" Neji's sudden call was cut off abruptly.

Sasuke's beautiful face marred with a frown and worry looked up to the pale-eyed subordinate. The frown grew deeper at the sight of the Hyuuga's Byakugan slowly slipping off. "Neji, what's wrong?"

The older teen turned to Sasuke, his clear eyes slowly giving way to the crimson that had crept from the edges of his too large eyes. A pained croak managed to get past trembling lips as he abruptly exploded into the raven's face just as Shino had. Dark eyes widened in shock as the last of the Hyuuga's blood fell on him. Kiba was still held protectively in Sasuke's arms and Naruto's body was still guarded by the Uchiha's own. Naruto had to say; Sasuke was one hell of a captain to have been able to do that even in such an incident.

"We- We need to get out of here…" Sasuke seemed to finally snap back after a moment. He glanced at the growling Akamaru beside him. "Akamaru, could you—" Sasuke stopped short when he saw the raised hackles of the loyal dog. His eyes now held a hint of fear in them. "Akamaru, what's wrong?"

When the dog began to bark, Sasuke followed the direction of the barking. His eyes widened even more if possible at something just off to Neji's now mangled body. Kiba was clutching at Sasuke for dear life. He was clearly afraid, and the young Uchiha seemed to be his only lifeline. His strangled sobs reached Naruto's ears like a broken song. "Please! I don't want to die! I don't want to die! Please save me! I can smell it! I can smell it! Death…!"

Naruto was in nothing more than overwhelmed in shock and complete puzzlement. What was it that Kiba and Sasuke had seen to make them react like that? And Akamaru looked so vicious! What was it that disturbed them so?

**Look carefully, kit**, came the dark voice of the old fox residing within him, **Look carefully, but be wary…**

Naruto nodded absently in his reply even though he knew the fox couldn't well be bothered to see, and squinted hard enough—

He gasped. Was that…? But it couldn't be! For hovering just a few feet away from his remaining live comrades and his body was a wispy shadow with no form. He licked dry lips. It wasn't possible that he was seeing a spirit – a _ghost_ – now, could it? Then again it could be an illusion to his dreaming mind? Was he even dreaming in the first place?

"Who—_What_ are you?" Sasuke's quiet voice barely trembled in his demand – and Naruto was proud. Trust the raven to do such a bold thing. If it were him, he'd probably be trembling and wailing his ass off by now – _probably_. The hovering form seemed to chuckle deep in the recesses of his mind. Naruto gagged at it. It seemed as though the chuckle was invading his mind and trying to squeeze its dirty, icy-cold self into his very pores. To put it simply, Naruto was very disturbed by even its soft sound.

**Feel lucky you've not seen it personally, kit. If you had, I wouldn't be able to guarantee your sanity either**, the Kyuubi's warmer voice interjected to him – and if what Naruto was hearing was correct, the old fox even seemed slightly shaken,**What you are seeing is a being even older than I am. And I admit, it terrifies me. **

If the situation weren't so serious, Naruto would have gladly laughed, chortled even, at the Kyuubi's weakness. At the same time though, he was scared. Something that terrifies even the great nine-tailed demon was not to be taken into consideration lightly and Naruto found himself praying that Sasuke, or the Sasuke he was seeing then, would not provoke the being too much.

"_Silly child…I am not something that you can put so easily into words…I am light. I am dark. I am shadow. I am anything I want to be. I am what you want to see. I am your silliest dream. I am your most frightening nightmare…_" the shadow's voice felt worse than the chuckle. It gripped the warmest skin like ice and ripped the strongest heart of its will. Naruto felt ready to cry himself shitless then. He felt so scared. His mouth moved in a silent prayer even though he knew the being would never look at him. It was a memory after all, and it couldn't really be real. He allowed a selfish urge to be grateful that he had not met the being personally. The experience would probably have scarred him for life. _Just like how it scarred Kiba and Sasuke…_

"You killed my friend, you- you _monster_!" came Kiba's enraged voice. Naruto couldn't suppress a gasp. Kiba must either be extremely angry to snap like that, what with all the suffocating tension or he was just screaming for his death sentence. Naruto wisely chose the former. He prayed and trembled for the angry brunette, as the being seemed to lean over in amusement to peer into the teen's eyes.

"_Such spirit I see. Such spirit that I seek…Inuzuka Kiba…Such wonderful anger you radiate. Would you allow me to take…_" its voice was barely audible like a snake's dangerous hiss as it bent lower over the angered Kiba. Sasuke pulled on his subordinate's arm vainly as the other teen fought against the offending hand and leant even closer towards the being, his eyes glittering fiercely from his tears. "Bastard!"

Naruto covered his ears as the being howled right into his soul. Fresh tears leaked from the corners of his eyes even as they watched in horror when the being swooped down on the angry teen. Blood splattered across the empty yard. A white head fell lifelessly onto the ground before two – not including the unconscious or spirited – shocked bodies.

"Akamaru!" Kiba cried and ran to the dog, or what was left of it that could still be considered a body, Sasuke looking very pale and still helplessly trying to pull Kiba back while at the same time protect Naruto's unconscious body. The Inuzuka sat crying on his heels as he rocked to and fro with the lifeless head in his arms. His eyes were dull and any hope or anger in it was gone. The being was nowhere in sight and Naruto had a useless hope that it had vanished.

"_You are perfect for me…but I will break you first, and then make you mine…_" the slithery voice made the boys shiver and Naruto looked around for it. He noticed at the corner of his eye that Sasuke was doing the same. At the same time, the raven continued vainly to try pull Kiba back. Naruto let out a gasp when he saw it rise right behind the unaware Uchiha. He tried to rush over but he was stuck. Why won't he move?!

**This is a memory, kit. Remember that! **the Kyuubi's voice grounded him and once again, Naruto found himself only able to watch. And he watched as Sasuke spun around to freeze at the closeness of the being, his lips touching the wispy shadow. He winced as the being's voice echoed into his mind. "_You…are so beautiful…Uchiha Sasuke…I will definitely…make you mine…_"

Naruto continued to watch, helpless tears of frustration running down his cheeks as he saw the being's strange milky eyes widen to stare right into the Uchiha's own. He watched as Sasuke screamed, unable to stop his walls being forcefully torn apart and his very soul open and raped so mercilessly. He watched still as the being vanished abruptly after imprinting his terror into Kiba's soul as well. The only thing that was left seemed to be its choking laughter hanging eerily in the air.

…**to be continued…**

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**i'll try update as soon as possible. but for now, my brain is really dry... **


	3. Chapter 3

**Enjoy.**

**Disclaimers apply.  
**

**Be My Friend?**

**03**

Naruto started awake. The remnants of the horrifying vision – it was too vivid to be any _dream_ – still clung to him, and he shivered.

"Naruto!"

The familiar voice anchored him back to reality. Blinking rapidly and struggling to calm his breath, he turned to the worried man. "I- Iruka-sensei…"

It was then that he realized that his small apartment was shaking. It made him even more disoriented and he fell to his knees – but the floor wasn't really shaking, he noticed – beside a trembling, very pale Sasuke; who was frothing in the mouth. All hell broke loose in his mind as the vivid vision he had gone through rushed back fiercely.

"Sasuke! Don't take him, don't take him!"

Iruka struggled to keep the blond calm. He had been so worried when Naruto suddenly collapsed over Sasuke. He had barely touched the young 2nd Captain, though, when the blond became conscious again. Sasuke had begun shaking, soon after, and then, everything went out of the boundaries of logic. Then again, as a shinobi, Iruka should have been trained to take such things in his stride. Except that the student that he had almost taken as a son was hysterical in his arms, and said student's newly recovered friend seemed to have a terrifyingly violent epileptic attack. And did he mention how every non-living object in the same said student's apartment was currently either spinning rapidly in the air or shaking as though a major earthquake had hit them?

A scream pierced the chaotic silence as the spinning glass on the dark counters exploded one by one. The shinobi in the apartment gathered closer on instinct. Hinata and Tenten stumbled off the couch they had been sitting on as it too began to buck like a wild animal. They scrambled towards the tightly huddled group in the middle of the apartment and clutched each other in fright. The group ducked almost as one when a photo frame whizzed over their heads.

"What the hell's going on?!"

"Kakashi! Make sure his head is cushio—"

"Tsunade! Sakura!"

The two medic-nin barely dodged in time from the set of cutlery that were raining down randomly on them. The group had to scatter from their guarded huddle over Sasuke as the sharper cutlery fell haphazardly onto them. Naruto managed to break away from Iruka's protective hold and bent over the raven in an attempt to block incoming projectiles. He looked up in shock, though, when he realized that the projectiles had missed them totally and instead were in a neatly formed circle around them. "What..."

Naruto started for the second time that day as he locked gazes with a very much awake Sasuke – who was currently sitting up. How was it that he had not noticed such an action was beyond him. He was more concerned, however, that the raven's eyes were not their usual obsidian. Instead, they glowed with an unearthly blend of fiery red and amethyst. The darker than night pupils were large and dilated. Those strange eyes stared into him, yet through him, and it made Naruto shudder.

"Naruto!"

The warning pulled him out of the searing gaze, but it was not enough to give him time to move away from the flying knife's haphazard path. A strange rational thought wen through him. 2nd ANBU captain or not, he would not have his friends see his dead stare, so he shut his eyes and waited for the pain. That is, if he was still alive and awake after a violent stab to his brains. Pain was only felt by the living, after all. He wondered idly if even Kyuubi's chakra could heal such a wound. He wondered who Sasuke could go to now that he was not going to be there to take care of him. He wondered if Captain Yamato would laugh or cry that another of his 2nd Captain would have to be replaced again in less than half a year. He wondered if...he wondered—

He wondered why the pain had not hit him yet.

Peeking open a wary blue eye, Naruto was met with the startling sight of the knife, that was supposed to end his life, hovering mere millimeters from his face. He took in a nervous gulp of air before pulling away slowly. Thankfully, it didn't follow him. It did drop to floor with a clatter though – it barely missed stabbing his hand instead – and it was only then that he realized that his small home was silent as well. No small object was flying or spinning in the air, and the furniture were still and well-behaved again. It felt too quiet. The most unexpected person broke the conquering silence.

"Dobe..."

Naruto whipped his head around to stare at a tired-looking raven. Had Sasuke— Did Sasuke just—

"Sasuke...?"

The familiar sultry dark gaze was rather exhausted, but it was so missed that Naruto nearly wept with joy that it had returned. Sasuke, _the_ Uchiha Sasuke – youngest 2nd ANBU captain of Konoha – was still there. The cold, prissy _princess_ of Konoha could still be rescued.

"Dobe, what..."

Sasuke was confused. How had he gotten into Naruto's apartment? And why was he feeling so exhausted? He tried to remember the last thing he did, but it shied away from his reach. Absently, he wiped at the warm dribble from his nose and froze at the sight of red on his hand. He was bleeding. A flash of red splashing across his vision had him suddenly remembering his last coherent thought before the daarkness took him. _Naruto, help me..._

And then, he screamed.

To say that Naruto was stunned would be an understatement. One moment, Sasuke was fine – he was _back – _and it felt that everything would be alright again. The next moment, the raven was screaming bloody murder. It was more than shocking. And it took another moment for Naruto to gather his bearings again. His tanned arms instantly grabbed for the paler hands pulling desperately at the dark hair. The darker eyes stared at him blankly, even though filled with fear, and Naruto couldn't help but flinch at the blood smeared across the raven's lower face. He pulled Sasuke into a warm hold, crushing the pale hands into his chest to prevent them from hurting either of them.

"Sasuke, Sasuke...calm down. Naruto's here...nothing can hurt you anymore..."

Throughout the recovery process ever since the fatal mission almost a year ago, Sasuke had been terrified at the sight of the colour red. But it was only then that Naruto understood why, and it made him hold Sasuke tighter to himself. He could feel the slighter man's shaking ease to smaller trembles against himself as he whispered calming nothings to the pale ear. "It's alright, Sasuke. Nothing's going to hurt you... Naruto's here..."

The pale hands clutched tightly to his shirt, and Naruto could hear barely audible mumbling from where Sasuke was currently sobbing into his chest.

"...it's coming Naruto it's coming it's coming _the monster's coming_ I'm scared I'm scared I'm scared it's coming I'm scared Naruto help me I'm scared..."

The words brought back the painfully vivid vision he had and Naruto began stroking the dark hair absently. "I know, Sasuke...but nothing's going to hurt you now..."

Kyuubi's dark growl rumbled through his mind. **I won't let it take our mate.**

Naruto couldn't agree more – though it didn't go through his anger hazed mind at the moment that Kyuubi had referred to the sobbing raven in his arms as such – and growled almost, sounding almost animalistic as he clutched protectively at Sasuke. His voice was still gentle as his eyes turned fiery. "Nothing's going to hurt you...**not while we're still here.**"

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Later, when Naruto had gotten Sasuke cleaned up and sleeping in his arms – the raven refused to let go of him, and each time Naruto moved away, he would cry and scream hysterically – the rookie nine, as well as Iruka, Kakashi and Tsunade, settled comfortably about the two. They were silent as Naruto recounted what he had seen in his short vision while he had collapsed. Hinata was crying, with a silently weeping Tenten holding her supportively, and two looked horrified at the thought of what had really happened.

"I think I would have gone catatonic in shock from it. It was no wonder Sasuke was terrified," Naruto ended quietly and only smiled gently at the sleeping raven cuddled in his arms. He looked around at the group of shinobi sitting around him and was once again reminded of how lucky he was to have such people standing with him. He was shaken out his thoughts when he felt the blanket being wrapped around him and Sasuke. He smiled gratefully at Sakura – it _had_ been getting colder, but he was too tired to get up yet, and Sasuke could get the warmth from him anyway.

"We'll be staying over for the night, okay? It's getting quite late anyway." She smiled sweetly at them, running her hand through Sasuke's hair and placing a chaste kiss on their heads, before turning to a waiting Lee and snuggling into the blanket with him. Ino was pressed comfortably at her side, with Shikamaru's arm around her slim form. Tenten and Hinata had pulled more blankets that Naruto hadn't known existed in his house, and soon, everyone was comfortably leaning against one another, fast asleep.

And for the first time in a long while, Naruto felt safe and content.

The night was cold and breezy. It would be a nice night to have a good sleep. Within the dark shadows of an abandoned mansion, a darker form stirred. The blood spattered walls of the mansion and the mangled leg of the child lying in the intestinal guts of his mother glistened wetly in the moonlight. It was a sight that came each time it feasted. Usually, it needed to feast only once or twice every decade. But it had feasted many times in the past six months, and it was hungry again. It had never felt the hunger as keen as it.

It remembered again the taste of the dark haired beauty that had visited its lair. It had intended to wait until it could break the young beauty again and again, but it felt that such a thing was becoming impossible. The small taste was already too addicting. Its small chuckle seemed to darken the already dark mansion even more. It slipped back into the shadows to prepare itself. It had not done such a thing in centuries, after all.

It was going on a hunt.

"_Such beauty I shall take...soon, sweet Sasuke..._"

**To Be Continued**

**It has been a long time, and I apologize. I know you will not listen to silly excuses, so I shall not give any. But know that I am doing this as a hobby and and am not a full-time writer getting paid. The only reward I get from this is your enjoyment in reading and reviews.**

**So thank you to all that bothered to read my story and even more to those that had reviewed – though I have yet to reply to any.**

**Either way, I hope you enjoy reading this chapter. I hope to write to you again soon.**

**Always hearting all of you; **

**Asukann.**


	4. Chapter 4

**Not checked, so please forgive any errors. **

**Dozo.**

**

* * *

**

**Be My Friend?**

**04**

Naruto started awake. The dream – nightmare of a vision, really – had come to haunt him that night again. It flashed almost dizzily in his mind as he struggled to shake himself out its dark hold.

"Naruto?"

The quiet voice felt like an anchor. It chased the morbid thoughts away and Naruto turned a gentle, grateful smile to the bashful raven standing at the door. Said raven was currently wearing a blue frilly apron with the words 'Kiss The Cook' written across it in blazing orange – it was a birthday present that Iruka had given him in hopes that the blond would be more interested to learn to cook healthier meals, that had nothing much to do with ramen, of course – and holding a spatula absently in one hand. His hair was fashionably messy, though Naruto had yet to discover _how_ Sasuke had actually made it do so without even bothering to comb it, and with the small smile lighting up the pale face almost childishly, Naruto thought that the raven looked rather adorable.

"Good morning, Sasu-chan."

Sasuke flushed at the nickname but made no protest. The old Sasuke would probably have incapacitated him for even thinking of doing such a thing. Then again, the old Sasuke would rather be dead than be caught wearing a _frilly_ apron and smiling so freely. At the moment though, Sasuke was returning his greeting with the same bashful attitude. "I- I made breakfast..."

Yawning, Naruto rolled off his bed and made his way to the door. He grinned as he passed the flushed raven, ruffling the messy locks playfully in the process. Habit had him leaning over to bury his face in the soft hair briefly. His smile turned gentle at Sasuke's sincerely delighted giggle. "Thanks, sweetie."

As he sat at the table filled with the goodness of Sasuke-made home-cooked food, he couldn't help but think how lucky a man he was. The horror of the night was quickly fading away into a warmth that filled his very soul. Now, if only it would stay that way. _And without any dark threats hanging over us for once..._

"I- Itadakimasu..."

Sasuke's soft voice had Naruto smiling again. Dark threats or not though, he knew that for that short while, he was truly happy.

"Itadakimasu!"

* * *

It was dark – rather, the room was dimly lit, and filled from top to floor with scrolls; all forbidden and kept in enforced secrecy by the ominously dark ink written all over the surface of the room. Only a meager candle, already close to its waning death, provided what extra light that was allowed in from the stained windows. The room looked decrepit and unused, yet had an unnatural feel of emptiness. Its corners lacked the expected dust and pestilence of abandon. It was as though some unnamed guardian was keeping these away. It made Kakashi's instinct go on high alert.

"Still nothing?"

Kakashi was humbled enough by the room's aura to admit his shock. He forced his thoughts back in order and shook his gray head in response. "No, Hokage-sama. Everything's still as quiet as ever."

A blonde head nodded thoughtfully in the gloom. Its owner was buried amidst more scrolls in the middle of the room, her equally blonde brows frowning at the barely legible characters written upon the ancient paper. Kakashi waited for a long moment – he was used to the woman being absent-minded and buried in research since the suspiciously supernatural incident in another blond's apartment a month back – before deciding that the Godaime had nothing else for him. He was almost out of the forbiding room before the familiar voice, casually authoritative from habit, had him pausing in his tracks.

"Psychokinesis, also known as telekinesis; it is the ability to move or cause change in an object simply by thinking about it, without any application of physical force. According to the scrolls, it is one of the hidden aspects of the mind, a human being's natural ability, awoken usually by an extreme trauma. It is supposedly a supernatural ability; a 'gift of the gods for the specially chosen'."

There was a sudden lengthy pause that had Kakashi wondering if the elder had simply been speaking up absently. He started again when the silence was broken with Tsunade finally looking up properly to look him in the eye – it was rather unnerving to Kakashi, really – as she spoke. Her tone was grim. It set warning bells off in Kakashi's already paranoid mind.

"That incident at Naruto's – any and all evidence I've found points to Sasuke as the source. I think he either has this supposed psychokinetic ability, or there might just be some fluke of nature that occurred at the same time he had that attack."

Kakashi had to raise his one visible eyebrow at this. "A fluke of nature that occurred right when Sasuke had his attack; exactly at the area of Naruto's apartment; without even the neighbours noticing. That sounds rather implausible to me. I think I'd rather go with the psycho thing. At least we have more on that."

Tsunade sighed and stood up slowly. She groaned as her muscles complained at their sudden use again after a long while. "Yes. At least we know that it happened after the training mission. It seems that meeting this 'monster' had Sasuke being awakened to his new _abilities_. What I want to know is, why only now?"

Tsunade sighed again and stretched herself. Kakashi waited patiently for her to face him once more. After a rather long bout of thoughtful silence, she turned to look at him. "I think it's time we go for a visit."

* * *

They had gone shopping without much interruption, greeted some of the rookie nine on the way to and from the market, and even had the time to enjoy a late snack of onigiri by Konoha's only river. No one – but for the random few that seemed to have nothing better to do – seemed to be bothered or wanted to bother them, and Sasuke had even smiled at a few children playing on the streets. The day was going very well. It was actually going so well that Naruto felt himself relax.

"Look, Naruto, that looks like Kaeru-chan (1)," Sasuke's voice lilted softly to him in the light breeze, and Naruto smiled at the pure wonder on the raven's face. It had been so long – too long – since Naruto had felt such a sense of peace and contentment. He wondered pensively if every day would be the same. He gave a heavy sigh and slouched lower into his couch. A timid hand on his face pulled him out his depressed thoughts. His blue eyes locked gazes with a pair of concerned obsidian. _So familiar, yet so different... _"I- Is Naruto feeling unwell? Maybe- Maybe I should not disturb—"

Without even knowing why, Naruto suddenly found himself pulling the smaller form into his arms, with his face buried into the soft raven hair. He felt the body in his arms go rigid before melting into his hold. Naruto smiled at the easy trust Sasuke was giving him. Sweet, kind Sasuke who was now nestled comfortably in his arms; who would allow no other but him to touch so intimately; who smiled so shyly; who would cry silently in his sleep from unspeakable terror about a lurking darkness; who had been taken so brutally by a being so horrific that its name was never to be spoken...

Naruto tightened his grip around the slim body. He smiled wryly. Just a year ago the person in his arms would have smacked him harshly for simply wanting to touch him. He sighed again. _Sasuke..._

"Eh, am I interrupting something?"

Startled, instinct kicked in and Naruto curled protectively around the currently asleep Sasuke – he wondered idly when the raven had fallen asleep – and let loose a barrage of shuriken that he had hidden in the folds of his waistband. He started again when he finally registered who it was exactly that stood before him. He blinked warily at the two intruders. "What the hell are you doing here?"

Kakashi's one visible eye crinkled up in amusement as he plucked a stray shuriken from the tattered piece of 'literature' he held. "Well, that was certainly an interesting welcome."

Tsunade growled rather audibly beside him and absently pulled at the shuriken that had managed to nick at her green haori. "I told you we should have simply knocked at the door like proper guests."

"Now, where's the fun in _that_?"

Naruto refrained from pummeling his head into the wall. _There goes my peace..._

_

* * *

_The air was tense. Freezing blue locked in an electrocuting battle with cool brown while the calmer, lopsided gray watched on. The small war of who-had-the-last-stare was broken abruptly by the least expected person.

"I'll go make tea," a sleepy voice drifted from somewhere within tanned arms and the slim raven wriggled out his hiding place to plop rather disgracefully on the floor. Two pairs of eyes, and one droopy eye raised in fond amusement, watched as the raven now trudged dutifully to the small kitchen. Tsunade crossed her arms and turned her gaze back to Naruto – who seemed totally content in simply watching Sasuke make their tea. She raised an eyebrow and glanced at Kakashi. The man shrugged, but she could sense the knowing smile under his mask.

"Maa, it's something to be expected after all...right, Naruto?"

The younger blond started at his name and fumbled for an answer. His tanned face flushed almost scarlet at the obvious looks he was getting from the two elders. Had they caught him staring? He hadn't really mean to. Sasuke seemed to be suddenly glowing and Naruto just felt curious and just _had_ to watch...

"Yea- Yeah? S- Sorry Kakashi-sensei, I was uh, distracted, uh, b- by uh, ah...shit."

Kakashi leaned forward – and was his one eye actually glinting? "So..."

Tsunade interrupted the potentially 'intimate' conversation by butting in with an impatient cough. "So, have you noticed anything out of the ordinary with Sasuke?"

It was unfortunate that Naruto happened to turn Kakashi's way. He flushed an even darker red at the suggestive gaze of the older man. "No! Uh, no. Nothing worth mentioning."

Tsunade twitched visibly. "You are certain? You haven't noticed any strange occurrences happening about him?"

This time, Naruto puzzled over the question. What was Tsunade getting at? "Not that I – wait. Well, I'm not sure if this counts, but there was one time that he, well—"

"Tea is ready."

Naruto blinked as Sasuke started serving them. He frowned at the number of cups laid out on the table. There were too many. He turned to tell Sasuke, but the raven had already turned and was heading to the door. The three occupants in the apartment wondered what he was doing. "Sasuke—"

Sasuke opened the door at that moment to a stunned Sakura who was just about to knock. The pink-haired jounin stood dumbfounded until Sasuke ushered her in. Behind her, Lee blinked dazedly at the unexpected welcome. He grinned awkwardly at the situation. "Ah, we have youthfully arrived...?"

Tsunade and Kakashi watched the whole scenario in confounded silence. Tsunade turned to the cups on the table. There were six; the exact number of people currently in the house. But when the tea was served, the latest two hadn't arrived yet. And by the looks on the most recent guests, they hadn't been expecting to _be_ expected either. She exchanged a thoughtful look with Kakashi before turning fully to Naruto. Sasuke was back in the kitchen, humming a cheerful tune without a care in the world. Naruto rubbed the back of his head in nervous habit.

"Well, it only happened once before, so I thought it was merely coincidence..."

"Coincidence! Naruto—"

Sasuke walked out the kitchen at that moment with a tray laden with food. He smiled shyly at his new guests. "You're hungry. Please eat."

Lee and Sakura blinked in surprise. Sakura spoke up first, her brows gathered in puzzlement. "But Sasuke, how did you know—"

Naruto's stomach chose that time to growl. He had no time to feel embarrassed though, when a bowl of hot, steaming ramen was placed before him. Jaws dropped without thought as stares of wonder and disbelief fell upon the still bashfully smiling Sasuke. The raven proceeded to look confused at the looks he was receiving.

"Un, i- itadakimasu...?"

**:To Be Continued:**

* * *

**I almost forgot.**

**(1) Kaeru-chan is Naruto's adorable wallet, Mr. Frog.**

**There. I have updated. Rather fluffy don't you think? Sigh. I had such a hard time time typing it, but I wanted to show the bond that grew between Naruto and Sasuke while they stayed together.**

**Yeah.**

**Comments please. Xb**

**Asukann**


	5. Chapter 5

**I have updated. Yayy.**

**Dozo.**

**Be My Friend**

**05**

The room was dark, allowing only the barest hint of sunlight through the crack of its forced opening. The warm light silhouetted one side of a well-endowed female, highlighting her golden-brown eyes and the strange tear-drop tattoo on her brow.

"What do you think, Kame-san?"

To the normal bystander, it would seem that the woman was wondering aloud to herself. To a well-trained eye, the shadows in a corner of the room could be seen shifting slightly into the faint outline of an aged man wiggling his butt in the air at no one in particular. (1) To his right lay an immobile body in a pool of glistening blood and the orifice that was leaking the viscous liquid was opening and closing like a goldfish's. The woman only sniffed at the stench and repeated her question. "Kame-san."

The elder froze suddenly and turned to regard her with a faded gray gaze. Blood smeared across his smiling face and dripped down his lips from his frantic feeding. His voice was deceivingly kind as he spoke. "I thank you, child, for bringing me this delightful meal."

The woman snorted. She was more than a little out her seventies, her looks and vitality only retained using a forbidden technique.

"I want to know if the boy has the ability."

The queer old man grinned wildly at her. "Oh. Oh, yes. The boy definitely has the ability. But if I get to taste more of him, I would know better…"

Another snort met his lewd suggestion and he gabbled desperately to the woman that was his first visitor in almost a decade. He was hungry for _more_; more attention; more warmth; more living beings that pulsed with delicious life; more _blood_. "Oh, oh, _oh_! I can tell you more – at a small price, of course – and I'll need to have more of that same sweetness – of course, I mean the boy's blood – and it _is_ sweet; addicting; delicious – ooh, I can already taste it—"

The woman was turning away in disgust and the old man's mind raced to keep her there. She was his only link to the outside world; the only one that would be able to bring him more, _more_! He pressed forward against the chakra enhanced bars of his round cell – damn them for still being as strong as his first days in the stinking place – and struggled to reach – if he could just _grab_ her – out to the already disappearing figure. "I _will_ tell you more – oh, oh, _oh_ I will – if you just give me _more_ – please!"

But the thick door only slammed shut; and the old man, infamous to the older generation as the Stealer of Souls – a telepathic murderer hoping to gain power and immortality by drinking the blood of the young and innocent – was alone once more.

Out in the bright sunshine, Tsunade sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose. She still remembered the terror of the notorious killer of Konoha. He had been the first telepath – despite having the ability only when he drank – and it had caused much chaos amidst the still disordered post-war period of that time. However, he was the only one she could think of that could confirm the strange occurrences of that were happening in her village. And despite it being a prisoner doomed for an execution that had been the one sacrificed, Tsunade still felt her conscience twinge in guilt. No living being deserved to have their deaths by forced soul-taking.

"Hokage-sama."

Tsunade sighed again and lifted hardened brown eyes to the ANBU standing just to her side. Yes, she was a Hokage. And she would do anything to protect her village – and her precious villagers.

* * *

"Morning, guys!"

The group of young shinobi moved to greet the bright greeting with equal warmth and vigour. Naruto grinned at his friends as he dragged the shy and still reluctant Sasuke behind him. Even so, the raven barely hesitated to return the girls' friendly hugs.

"What took you so long—"

"Oi, you made us wait—"

"Shika, wake up! Naruto and Sasuke are here!"

There was a startled yelp as Shikamaru awoke in the river. Ino looked smug as she stood up from her short trance – her self-modified Mind Transfer jutsu of the Yamanaka clan allowed her to enter another's body only partially; and it was especially useful when the other body was asleep or unconscious. The drenched boy pouted at his girlfriend – it was something that seemed to have infected him with his recent attachment to the platinum blonde – and playfully hugged her when he reached her side. The group watched in amusement as the girl now shrieked.

"Shika! Ooh, look! Now you've made me wet!"

"It doesn't matter. We're all going to get wet anyway."

Naruto frowned at Sasuke's light matter-of-fact voice. The rest of the group grew somber at the raven's soft voice. They had all heard of his strange 'coincidences' – and three of them shared a first hand experience of one of them – and were quite wary of what it entailed. They followed his obsidian gaze up to the blue sky. The sun was still winking brightly back at them and only the slightest signs of puffier clouds could be seen. They sighed in relief.

Well, if it _did_ rain, it would probably be a slight drizzle – and besides, it seemed a rather high possibility that the rain would come only hours later. They watched again as Sasuke broke his gaze and began to rummage Naruto's bag for the umbrella that he had had to force the blond to bring. They watched still as he opened it. Naruto, being quite accustomed to this display, decided to trust the raven's instincts and squeezed in under the small orange shelter. And it was lucky he did.

The sky opened to pour over the whole village soon after.

Sasuke frowned as the others began to flail in the downpour. "I _told_ you we'd get wet."

* * *

The sun had barely climbed to its peak when thunder boomed, lightning flashed, and the rain fell in dark sleets. The main streets, usually bustling with the village's people, no matter civilian or shinobi, were empty. The colourful stalls with the vendors calling gaily to the crowd were dark. It seemed that most of them thought better than to try wait out such ominous weather and had deemed it better to close shop for the day. After all, being warm and cozy at home, being comfortably _dry_, sounded a mite more tempting than being cold and wet under the small shelter of a shop carts – vendors with indoor shops and shop houses definitely had it easier.

In the Hokage tower, the leader of this currently lethargic village was staring out from one of the large windows of the office, the warm brown of her eyes glazed over in deep thought and reflecting the gloomy weather she wasn't really watching.

"Hokage-sama."

Kakashi's polite call was roused her from her mind and she finally turned away from the not-really-engaging view of her village. The gray-haired man looked indifferent as usual, but Tsunade could easily sense the tremor of excitement under it. It seemed that Kakashi had found out something interesting as well – and it was barely even afternoon! Tsunade arched an aristocratic eyebrow – the aristocracy had only been from her grandfather's line, she was sure – at the elite jounin. "Well?"

If he hadn't been wearing a mask over the lower half of his face, Tsunade was sure that Kakashi would have licked his lips in a moment's stray thought – should he simply tell her everything or beat about the bush for a bit just to annoy her? Another eyebrow joined in the arching when Kakashi decided that his findings were too valuable to be beat about the figurative bush. It's better not to damage goods, as they say.

"I have been scouring the…lower level libraries," and here Tsunade knew that Kakashi had taken to searching the older clans' secret store of literature – and there was definitely a lot of scouring to do; the 'stores' twisted below the foundations of Konoha itself, "and found sources that dictate a familiar situation to ours. All describe a vision of nightmares, of a shadow of fear itself, which steals the minds of innocents. This…shadow creature is said to strive on all negative feelings and prefers absolute horror and despair above all. It…_feeds_ through blood."

Tsunade frowned. "What has this got to do with 'our situation', as you put it?"

Kakashi pulled out the large scroll that he had been carrying. Tsunade marveled at the yellowed silk – she was sure it had been pure white once, and probably belonged to the oldest form of royalty in the past – and the copper brown scriptures neatly scribed into the material. Tsunade noted in morbid fascination that the ink was most likely blood, and from rather tragic sources. The scroll reeked of evil and despite her obvious interest, Tsunade was rather repulsed to touch it. She glanced sharply at Kakashi. Such an item was sure to contain a dark curse or some sort, and bound to a protection seal and spells that most shinobi had rarely the amount of power to break – such was the power of the ancestors of the current shinobi that chakra hadn't really needed chanted jutsu or hand seals to unlock. It sent chills and made her warning sensors scream danger at such a relic being out in the open.

"Where did you get this?"

The question was more of a demand and carried with it a dangerous glint of authority. Kakashi barely flinched under the scrutiny. He was more or less used to it by then. And they _needed_ the scroll. It was the only link to the whole mysterious 'situation'. "I found it in the Uchiha collection. Apparently, they were the royal seers in the past."

Tsunade blinked at this new revelation, all thoughts on the relic temporarily forgotten. "Seers? Well, I guess _that_ explains young Uchiha's strange abilities."

Kakashi nodded. "When I stumbled on the scroll, its seals had already been broken. According to the notes the Historians gave me, the spells around the scroll was acting as a chain or barrier. It had been acting as a carrier or container for something – much like the _jinchuuriki _– and from the translations of the scriptures, the scroll had contained the Shadow of Nightmares, or more known as the 'Bayangan'."

Kakashi paused suddenly and Tsunade came to a sudden conclusion about this 'Bayangan'. "Kakashi, might this—"

"Yes; apparently this scroll was to be the prison of the being in Naruto's vision."

**To Be Continued**

* * *

(1) This was typed by my dearest brother. I wonder how he thought of it.

**And so ends the fifth chapter. I've got nothing else to say but a big thank you to all my readers and reviewers alike.**

* * *


	6. Chapter 6

**Be My Friend?**

**06**

"…and the Prince and Princess lived happily ever after."

Hinata smiled as she ended her story, her free hand not holding the children's storybook stroking Kiba's short brown locks absently. Of course, the storybook was of the soft-cover type. Nothing too hard – even the covers of children's storybooks – were allowed this deep in the psycho ward. Hinata's small smile turned grim as she was reminded of her current location. How she wished that Kiba would get better too…

"Young Mistress Hyuuga."

Hinata sighed and closed the storybook. It was time to leave. "I'll be there in a minute."

The elder attendee bowed and left the room gracefully. Hiashi had become unexpectedly protective over his eldest daughter and since the untimely death of his previous heir. Hinata knew it was expected of her to take over the leadership of the Hyuuga clan after her father. She _was_ the unofficial next-in-line after Neji; though, she hadn't really expected it to happen. Neji was supposed to get married and have kids and have a new heir to replace her – he had told her that he was thinking about telling Tenten of his interest in her, that he should- should—

"Young Mistress, it really _is_ getting late."

Hinata started out her darkening thoughts, blinking away the sudden tears, and stood up as quietly as possible. It wouldn't do to cause the unconscious brunet to awake; it would give the staff more than a little trouble to get Kiba calm and asleep peacefully again. Hinata leant over to sweep the stray brown strands away and kiss Kiba's forehead fondly. "Goodnight, Kiba-kun."

Only then did Hinata turn to her frowning attendee. She sighed again as she stepped out the white room, the elder woman following behind her dutifully. "You should not have stayed for so long, Young Mistress. You know how Master Hyuuga gets when you go _visiting_."

Hinata's soft features hardened considerably at the inclination. "It is my business to go where I please, Harue-san. Father does not control where I should or should not be."

No further _advice_ was passed on after the heiress' quiet rebuttal. Hiashi may be a powerful man in the Hyuuga clan but his eldest daughter was steadily surpassing him in more than just strength or grudging respect. A few days ago, Hyuuga Hinata had gone against her father in a battle of words.

And won.

* * *

Naruto forced himself to calm down. Counting to ten backwards would probably help. _Ten…nine…eight…_

"I refuse, I refuse, I _refuse_!"

Naruto's already prominent frown grew deeper. Ok…maybe he would need to count from a higher number. Perhaps a hundred…

A small vase – the only proper vase in the whole of the tiny apartment, really; and the house-warming gift from Sakura – shattered as it hit the wall just by the blond's head.

…From a thousand then. Naruto flinched but still forced himself to remain calm. He groaned as he saw the familiar pieces. _Sakura would kill me!_

"You will _not_ take me there! I _refuse_ to go, you hear me?!"

Another unfortunate household item – Naruto breathed a sigh of relief as the picture frame with the whole of Team Seven in their chuunin vests just missed the television – shattered on its hazardous impact on the battered wall. _One thousand…nine-hundred and ninety-nine…nine-hundred and ninety-eight…_

"What in all the blazing villages is happening here?!"

Iruka's voice suddenly cut through the chaos as Naruto was reaching number four-hundred and fifty-eight. The blond finally dared to open his eyes to survey the wreckage done to his house. He groaned and began to pick through the bits of broken furniture – there, a leg of his one good dining chair stuck itself in the wall – and more pieces of his kitchen-ware – Naruto grunted as he had to force the only chopper in his house from its wedged spot on the cabinet door; and later try to salvage the chopping board that it had gone through as well – from around the small apartment.

"_Well_?"

Iruka's voice grew in pitch and volume in his annoyed impatience. The man had on his stern academy teacher pose, and that meant if no one were to give him a proper answer within the minute, they had better be prepared to risk themselves to his ear-bleeding, mind-numbing, and all together guilt-tripping view into your soul. Naruto never really managed to get over the guilt-tripping part. It was what made him open his mouth to hastily answer the older man's demand.

"Um, I'm not sure really. We were supposed to get ready to go for this week's outing, and then Sasuke suddenly blew up," Naruto added a panicked, "_really_!" at Iruka's narrowed gaze. In a tone decidedly softer than the one used on Naruto, Iruka turned to the harshly panting raven.

"Sasuke, could you tell me what made you throw such a tantrum?"

"You- He- He wanted to bring me to- to—"

A wave of dizzy confusion swept through him and Sasuke stumbled against a broken table leg – how it happened to be there was a mystery to be solved at a later time – only to have strong stable arms slowly helping him to the floor. Naruto's worried baby blue eyes and Iruka's concerned brown swam into view and Sasuke rubbed at his brow in an attempt to chase the sudden throbbing headache away. "Sasuke! Sasuke, you alright?"

Sasuke whined and buried his face into the warm arm around him as the pounding in his head doubled. "Un…headache…"

Naruto looked at Iruka in something close to panic when the raven seemed to drowse into his embrace. "M- Maybe some sleep would be good then…?"

At Iruka's certain nod and Sasuke's soft agreement, Naruto easily carried the half-conscious raven to their shared room – _that_ was also worrying to the blond. Later, he sat beside his sleeping friend, absently stroking back the soft dark hair from the pale brow. He had called Sakura over just to make sure that Sasuke wasn't coming down with anything serious – you never know; _really_ – and after assuring the anxious blond that, "Sasuke's really, really _really_ fine," she left with Iruka to meet up with Lee at the Academy.

Naruto had felt so relieved after that; he barely moved from the raven's bedside for a long while. When he did though, it was with a startled thought. When had he started caring so much for Sasuke? He contemplated the thought for a long moment before starting a second time at an unexpected realization that left him quite uncertain about his feelings.

Uzumaki Naruto, the supposed rival and best friend of Uchiha Sasuke, could not recall _never_ being careless towards his raven friend. Everything Naruto did; every reaction that Naruto returned to Sasuke, it was usually with his whole self – and even if he had been unhappy or upset, he had been content. And that was all that really mattered.

Right?

With a heavy sigh that reflected his equally heavy thoughts, Naruto pushed himself away from Sasuke's sleeping form. He barely hesitated to press a gentle kiss on the other's brow. Naruto's smile was affectionately fond as he gazed at Sasuke's peaceful face. "Sweet dreams, Uchiha-teme."

* * *

"Please…please…"

The stink of torn flesh and blood swamped the tiny apartment. It seemed as though a manic artist had decided to go wild with his creativity and splashed only red paint all over the white walls of the rented place. Part of this crimson – still terrifyingly warm – was splattered on the only survivor in the carnage.

"Please baby…"

She was currently staring emptily at a mangled body, that was really more of a small pile of bloodied flesh, and struggling to attach its small head back on. A dark shadowed figure hovered above her, its strange milky eyes watching in amusement.

"Baby please…wake up…"

The being's eyes narrowed suddenly as it grew bored and it swept lower towards the deranged woman still trying to reattach her child's head and body together.

"Baby wake for mommy please—"

With a pained cry, the woman's eyes rolled up into her head. She had barely raised a hand to her aching head before she exploded.

"Ah, s_weet, sweet despair…_"

The shadow gathered above the woman's body for a moment, seeping the last of the woman's soul into itself before turning towards an unknown direction in the apartment. The being seemed to grin as its eyes glinted in malicious glee.

_Prepare yourself._

_For I come…_

_…my beautiful Sasuke._

* * *

Naruto awoke suddenly. He wasn't sure why – he was barely breathing hard from any nightmare, and he had not even a drop of cold sweat on him – so he blinked up at his cracked ceiling sleepily before turning onto his side. He blinked again at the sight of Sasuke sitting up on his own bed.

"'Suke...? Why ya up?"

"_It comes…_"

Naruto pushed himself up on his elbows, rubbing his eyes tiredly. "'Suke...what ya on abou'?"

Sasuke chose that moment to turn his head away from the bright light of the moon to stare at Naruto with his unearthly gaze of fiery red and glowing amethyst. It was his second time seeing those eyes but Naruto couldn't help the shiver caused by it. He even had to swallow twice to force his voice to work.

"Sa- Sasuke…?"

The strange eyes closed unexpectedly and fluttered open to reveal Sasuke's blank, yet soft gaze of the familiar obsidian. The lithe raven blinked in adorable confusion at Naruto. He suddenly shivered and in a voice that was only slightly audible and more than a little lost, called out to Naruto.

The blond's tension melted away as abruptly from whence it came and Naruto shifted on his bed. Sasuke needed no more indication to pad over silently to the other's bed and slide in under the warm blankets. Naruto smiled as Sasuke curled up with practiced ease into his arms, tucking his raven head neatly under Naruto's chin. The blond ANBU captain rubbed the slightly trembling back in an attempt to sooth. "Was it a nightmare, 'Suke?"

Sasuke silently shook his head but cuddled deeper into Naruto's hold. He felt safe there; content. Still, he clutched childishly onto the blond's white top. His voice was muffled as he whispered his frightened plea. "Don't leave me alone?"

"I won't leave you. Promise. Now sleep, 'Suke. 'M sleepy." Naruto punctuated this with a yawn and snuggling up to the added warmth on his bed. Within minutes, both young men were asleep.

…**to be continued…**

* * *

**Yayy for fluff!**

**Watcheva. Xb**

**Once again, thank you to those who reads my story and more to those who bothers to give me comments. I love you all. **

**May you be blessed with good fortune.**

**- Asukann**


	7. Chapter 7

**It's out! Yatta! **

**I wanted it out earlier, but my internet was down cause _someone_ didn't pay the bills...**

**Ah, well. I got my own anyway, and so will pay my own bills. Hm. Not that you all needed to know.**

**Dozo.**

**

* * *

**

**Be My Friend?**

**07**

Even in a rather large hidden village in Konoha, it wasn't exactly hard to find one Hatake Kakashi. Most of the time he would be found hidden in his favourite roost at the highest point of the Hokage tower – or any of the higher places in Konoha, really – or sitting atop one of the trees in the training grounds. He would rarely be seen without his usual green (1) book of eroticism that he calls entertainment. At the moment though, neither one of the shinobi looking for him, nor most of the civilians looking _out_ for him, had any luck of finding the masked jounin.

Hatake Kakashi was too deep inside the hidden vaults of the village's libraries to be found. And at the moment, he had come across another informative scroll about the unknown and mysterious _Bayangan_. The scroll was buried deep under numerous other scrolls, and heaped with dozens of decayed seals that was supposed to prevent its location. It was intriguing to Kakashi.

"'_The Night Terror: Bayangan_'. Hm. An aptly named scroll," Kakashi was prone to talking aloud to himself during those times. It created for a good distraction to his being alone under tons of gravel and rock, under a bustling village teeming with life; to put it simply, it chased away feelings of a hauntingly depressing loneliness in the dark tunnels. He coughed as he shook away the gathered dirt and dust around the scroll. As the haze of choked air cleared, Kakashi was surprised to be holding a yellowish metal container. It seemed that the title on the side of the cylindrical container hadn't been painted on like he had thought, but engraved deeply inside instead. Out of naturally childish curiosity, Kakashi shook it.

Of course, he hadn't expected the cylinder to click open. He didn't expect the scroll to suddenly come unrolling from the metal thing either. It left Kakashi staring quite dumbly at the dozen feet long or so scroll. It seemed that the cylinder was the scroll itself wrapped with a clever mechanical contraption. And it seemed that the whole scroll was of the yellow metal as well, with the words and drawings engraved in.

"Interesting…"

Now, there was just the tiny problem of rolling the scroll back up and into the tiny slit of the container.

* * *

Naruto was having a good time that day. Sasuke had seemed to want to apologize for his strange tantrum the week before with a grand home-made breakfast – which Naruto graciously _inhaled_ – and after, they had gone out to shop for their groceries. The best thing was that they were actually back on _proper_ talking terms – this meant that Naruto no longer needed to do all the talking with Sasuke simply ignoring him unless necessary; and this unfortunately included his demands for the raven to cook – with them going out for the usual late lunch date with Sakura and a strangely dirty Kakashi.

"Maa…I guess it's time for me get back to work," Kakashi drawled and scratched absently at his chin with his usual green book. Naruto and Sakura looked up at their old teacher – not that Kakashi was old at all; he was actually one of the younger elite jounin that had already gone through ANBU training – in nothing short of avid interest. The past few weeks, Kakashi had been hideously busy and hard to find. Of course, being the former members of Team Seven – and Kakashi's first and only group of genin – they had a knack of being outrageously wanting to always know what was going on and be the center – else, _close_ to the center – of things.

"So, what've you been up to, Kakashi-sensei?"

It was thus expected for Sakura to ask such a question. Kakashi sighed. Ah, the nosy wonders of teenagers. Looking carelessly at the pink-haired chuunin, he gave her his usual smile – with his eyes, of course – and shrugged. "Oh, just this and that…"

And before Naruto could add on to the typical nosiness with another question, Kakashi had teleported away with a puff of smoke. Naruto pouted and turned to the shyly smiling Sasuke. "Don't worry, Naruto. What Kakashi's doing will benefit us all."

Sakura and Naruto were once again left with wondering what Sasuke meant with the cryptic phrase. They walked in comfortable silence for a while to meet the rest of their usual clique as per the norm for that week.

"Oi, you're late," was the greeting by a rather pre-occupied Shikamaru before he was pulled down towards Ino's lips for another round of public make-out. Sakura twisted her features in mock disgust.

"Ugh, get a room, you two," she teased before turning incredulously to a snacking Chouji. "How can you still _eat_?"

Chouji shrugged in return. "I take it as 'training cum entertainment'."

Naruto guffawed loudly beside the sighing Sakura as Lee approached. They exchanged a sweet chaste kiss on the lips – to which Ino somehow found the time to break off from her make-out session to retort to Sakura to "Get a room, Forehead!"

Tenten thankfully prevented any bickering between the two girls with her cheerful greeting as she ran up to them. "Sorry for fetching you guys late. It took quite a while to get the visitation passes ready. You got the cake?"

Lee lifted the small box in his hand. Of course, his other was grasped tightly with Sakura's. That day was a special day for the small group of young shinobi. It was to be the first time that they would be allowed visitation rights to Kiba – the brunet had finally been deemed 'well enough' to have more than just the standard four visitors each – and though it was only for a short half hour, it was still a happy enough time for them. Besides, they were content enough to be able to finally celebrate Kiba's birthday together with the real person.

Happy chatter and much good humor bubbled from the group as they made their way to the hospital. They were excited to be going to the rather oppressing white building while looking forward to something positive. They hurried their pace at the sign of dark skies. It wasn't long, though, before they reached their destination. The building, as were most architectures meant for those of the institute's, was situated near the outskirts of the village and had a high fence that acted more like an enclosure to the patients inside.

Naruto turned to find Sasuke looking rather terrified of entering the smallish white building. It looked too much like the Mental Institute it was, and Naruto understood that it held unpleasant memories for the raven. "It's alright, Sasuke. I'll be there with you all the way."

Sasuke, however, still stubbornly stood where he was, and Naruto was growing anxious at the sight of the raven's fiercely twinkling eyes. Naruto approached his friend and was startled when a pale hand grabbed at the sleeve of his jacket. "D- Don't go."

Naruto blinked. He sighed and held the hand clutched tightly on his jacket calmly. "Sasuke, nothing's going to happen. We are just going to visit Kiba. You want to visit Kiba, right?"

After a long moment of silence that had Naruto getting rather antsy – the rest had already gone in and other visitors, not that there were many, were starting to stare – Sasuke nodded. Naruto smiled in relief and tugged the hand into his own. He started again when Sasuke suddenly stepped forward to wrap slim arms around him. "I really, _really_ don't want to go in, but we have no choice."

Naruto looked down at the raven head in confusion – what had Sasuke meant by 'no choice'? "Um, Sasuke, if you don't want to go, we could always—"

At that moment, the skies decided to pour and Naruto, swearing rather prettily, instinctively dragged the raven with him into the closest shelter there was around them. This shelter happened to be the hospital that Sasuke had told Naruto he had 'no choice' in going in.

"Oh. Wow."

Sasuke's smile was small as he flicked stray droplets off Naruto's jacket. Naruto flushed at the bashful attention and leant over to help Sasuke dry as well. Naruto got so deeply determined he was in his task – he didn't want to seem awkward in such close presence to the raven – that when he finally looked up, he was less than an inch away from pale, pink lips. Now, all Naruto had to do—

"Um, am I interrupting something?"

Naruto stuttered a negative while flushing a deep red. Beside him, Sasuke blinked and slowly came back to his senses. A moment later he was as red as the tomatoes he favourited so much. He covered his face in an attempt to hide from their friends' amusement. He wanted to melt on the spot; disappear; or simply squeal and run away – heavy rain or no.

At the same time, Naruto struggled to look as nonchalant as possible. "Um, we were just uh, drying ourselves from the rain."

Sakura smirked at her adorably flustered best friends. "_Sure _you are…"

_**Yeah, **_**sure**_** you are…**_

And Naruto wanted to shrivel up in a hole and die quietly of embarrassment at the last comment. _Shut it, Kyuubi!_

* * *

"The text is surprisingly easy to interpret. The words are the ancient hieroglyphic of the first shinobi of the lands. It seems that this '_Bayangan_' is apparently as old as, or maybe even older than the tailed-beasts. It's totally _fascinating_!" Ran, the current village researcher that Tsunade had pulled in, gushed as she read the metal scroll that was currently sprawled all about the large office that had been provided to her. "Just look at how old the engravings are! And this _yellow metal_ you keep referring this cylinder as! This- This is the one of the purest form of _gold_ there is! And the contraption! Ingenious, I tell you!"

On and on the woman rambled until Tsunade had to politely call for her attention with a small cough. Looking instead irritated at being interrupted, Ran turned her large, bespectacled eyes to the Hokage. Her irritation cleared as she remembered her real task to what she was being paid for.

"Oh. Oh, yes. You wanted to know what the _Bayangan_'s effect has with its victims…" Ran dug under a pile of papers to pull out a smallish folder of some sort. "I compiled most of what I could get inside here, as well as the strange abilities these effects bring out. With the amount of materials I had, I could only get very little. Still, it is truly fascinating…"

Tsunade took the file and opened it with a touch of excitement. She would finally know what this being was that took out two of her most potential shinobi while leaving two others mentally unsuited to return to work. As she scanned the neatly written information in the file, she frowned.

"_The 'Bayangan' is a shadowed being that seems to feed on a person's darkest feelings. It usually does so by putting its victims through the greatest fear, pain, or sorrow just before their deaths. Most deaths are decidedly gruesome and have been known to be used as the visual source of fear for its other victims. The 'Bayangan' has been said to prefer full massacres and massive killing sprees while it feeds._"

Tsunade shuddered at the viciousness of the creature and skipped a few page describing the _Bayangan_ in as full detail as Ran was able to. She resumed her reading at one particular page.

"_Though they are rare, there are also the few cases of victims surviving its killings. The 'Bayangan', however, always leaves its imprint on the victims._

"_These victims are usually mentally unstable or severely suicidal. They usually die within the few months and years they are alive. The 'Bayangan' _always_ return to devour its victims._"

Tsunade started at the sentence. That meant Kiba and Sasuke were in danger! She bent lower into the file in her anxiousness.

"_There have been multiple recorded cases of these victims showing strange abilities that had nothing to with _(chakra, or, in the ancient form)_ magic. These abilities seemed to stem from their natural abilities and only enhanced to become something of a gift to the victims. The different recorded abilities are written below._"

Tsunade wasn't surprised to find in the list 'Clairvoyance' – as what Sasuke seemed to have; it was the ability to look into the future – and the more common 'Telekinesis'. What was surprising was that Sasuke was showing two of the abilities. It was possible that Kiba had that ability as well. Perhaps he had not shown it yet? Tsunade had to read more.

"_The abilities of the victims to the 'Bayangan' are usually seen for the first time in a dangerously explosive manner. Most abilities are awakened more commonly, when the 'Bayangan' feels their presence and is tracking them down (here their abilities act as a shield) or when another victim has eye contact with another victim. The latter awakening is a mystery. There has only been one incident of it and even so, this awakening has never been officially recorded._"

Sasuke's unexplained outburst during his 'Return Party' suddenly made a lot more sense. It caused Tsunade to pause her thoughts, though. After all, it was stated in the file that such outbursts seemed necessary for the victim to protect themselves from the _Bayangan_. That meant the monster – Tsunade couldn't think of anything else to describe the…_being_ – was already on to Sasuke's trail. Kiba had yet to 'awaken', but if he did—

"The trail would be twice as noticeable…"

"What trail would be noticeable, Tsunade-sama?" Kakashi's already familiar voice quipped from behind her. Tsunade would have been suspicious at the unexpectedly upbeat tone – the Copy-nin was rarely that happy without _some_ annoyingly _suspicious_ reason – but was currently too immersed in her swirl of thoughts. Instead, she turned urgently to the gray-haired man and demanded the whereabouts of the only genin he had taken under his wing.

Kakashi blinked at his Village Head's harsh tone. Tsunade only used such a tone on him if she was panicked or if the village was in danger. Kakashi's instincts went into sharp alert. He frowned as he answered to the demand. "They are currently visiting Kiba at the Institution..."

Kakashi's frown deepened as Tsunade's face went a little ashen. "Hokage-sama, what's wrong?"

"Where is Sasuke?"

"He's with Naruto, of course. What's going on?"

Kakashi watched in slight trepidation when Tsunade handed him the file in her hands. Kakashi's eyes widened considerably at the words neatly penned down on the white paper. "We have to stop them."

Outside, the sky mirrored their dread and finally opened to pour endlessly.

* * *

"Happy birthday to you.

"Happy birthday to you.

"Happy birthday dear Kiba, happy birthday to you…!"

The otherwise silent room erupted into bright smiles and laughter as the dozen or so occupants cheered for their friend. The few nurses that had decided to join in the small party passed the plates and utensils they had managed to smuggle from the staff kitchen. Sakura and Ino bickered again about cutting the cake until Tenten got impatient and cut the cake herself – much to the girls' dismay. Chouji chortled his way through the cacophony – with his ever-faithful bag of chips – while Shikamaru incessantly muttered about troublesome friends. Naruto was attempting to create small but polite conversation with a stunned Hinata – the blond barely spoke more than a few necessary words to her; their relationship had gotten rather strained and awkward after Shino and Neji's death – in an attempt to have as little contact with a particular raven that made him blush like an academy schoolgirl.

It was bruising to his 'manly' ANBU Captain ego.

Of course, being so caught up in their own interactions and musings, no one really noticed the rather strained conversation – if we can call it a conversation – taking place at a quiet corner of the tiny, overcrowded ward.

"H- How are you doing, Kiba?"

The Inuzuka, as he seemed to have a habit of doing in this conversation, stared silently at Sasuke for a moment – he seemed to be _looking_ for something, though Sasuke wasn't sure what it was – before replying curtly. "Fine. You."

Sasuke fiddled nervously with the hem of his black shorts. Naruto had dressed him up in a simple long-sleeved cream shirt collared high around his neck, and plain black shorts. A pair of dark sneakers – it seemed that Naruto was fond of them; he had Sasuke wearing them every time they went out; and Sasuke hadn't really noticed – completed the strangely innocent yet stylish look. Again, Sasuke had not noticed. He was one who had never – and will never – bother to think twice about his appearance. At the moment, though, it made him look adorably nervous before Kiba. "Um, ah, I'm fine too..."

Another round of silence followed. Sasuke was acutely aware of the pair of deep brown eyes looking his way and continued to fidget in his seat. Sasuke anxiously wondered what to say next. He had never really had such attention placed on him and even then, it was usually the other party that continued the conversation. He never noticed how Kiba's pupils grew ever wider until his recently blank brown gaze seemed to create a pair of bottomless pits in his face.

"_I've found you..._"

Sasuke finally looked up to meet the darker than night gaze. His eyes widened and he froze when two pinpricks of milky white bled into the black to form pupils. Kiba - or what was supposed to be Kiba - grinned emptily back at him.

"_Sweet, sweet Sasuke._"

And as Sasuke's own eyes bled into the strange mix of purple and crimson, he screamed.

**To Be Continued.**

* * *

**(1) Naruto gave him the newest green book by Jiraiya at the start of 'Shippuden'. The newer book is green in colour.**

**I am, and was, too lazy to edit this story properly, so please excuse any silly mistakes. If you _do_ spot those confusing wriggly wormy plot para-worms that twist the whole story weirdly - by this, I mean any phrase that you think confuses you - please tell me and comment on them.**

**It would be good practice, anyway.**

**Jaa. 'Til next time.**

**-Asukann**


	8. Chapter 8

**It's shorter than usual but ah well.**

**Sorry for the long wait. Again.**

**Dozo.**

* * *

**Be My Friend?**

**08**

Kakashi was running. He was actually – honest to any and all Kage, bless their dead souls – _running_. And he was on the verge of screaming in panic.

_...w__hen another victim has eye contact with another victim..._

"Shit."

_...abilities are awakened..._

"Shit shit shit--"

_...in a dangerously explosive manner..._

"Shitshitshitshitshit--"

"Shut it, Hatake! You're making me fucking nervous!"

"Please don't swear, Tsunade-sama..."

"Shitshitshit--"

"Hatake Kakashi! I don't fucking give a damn who you--"

"Tsunade-sama!"

From behind them, Yamato sighed. He wasn't sure how he ended up there. One moment, he was walking past the Hokage's room, and the next, he had been dragged in. It was only a moment of rushed explanation about a certain _Bayangan –_ or at least, that was what he thought it was – before he was forced to follow after them. He understood that the situation was serious and he knew they were supposed to be fully alert and ready for the incoming danger – they were all high-ranking jounins; heck, two were at Hokage level – but their reactions were unexpected. Then again, he had never witnessed Kakashi or his Hokage panicked before. And to have them panic to the point of losing control was more than a little distracting to the task at hand; getting to Konoha's only institute for the mentally challenged as fast as it was possible.

"Ah, we've reached."

That certainly quietened them up to a somber silence as they practically rushed full tilt into the lobby of the hospital, scaring the medic-nin and visitors alike. It was, once again, Yamato who had to ask the obvious while the other three had to force themselves not to continue rushing in aimlessly in their panic.

"Inuzuka Kiba's room number. _Now_."

The trembling receptionist had to struggle not to stammer too much as she gave him the expected information. After all, it wasn't every day that four elite and very well-known jounins crashed into the lobby of a mental institute.

* * *

At this exact moment, Naruto was trying to force himself to _breathe_. A very sudden invisible force had lashed at him while he was talking to Hinata – and trying to avoid any attention from a certain raven – and he had found himself crushed against a white hospital wall. It was strange, though, that there were no signs of an external body, nor wind, carrying out this deed. In fact, it was unnaturally quiet...

His eyes snapped open with a start. He had heard a silent cry that sounded vaguely like--

_Sasuke._

It was fortunate then that when he was thrown harshly onto the wall, and held there unnaturally, his head was facing the corner that Sasuke was curled in. Naruto tensed at the sight of the madly grinning Kiba crouching gleefully before a terrified Sasuke. He opened his mouth instinctively to cry out to the raven. The lack of air in his body instead caused him to see black spots. Naruto squeezed his eyes shut in desperation. _Damn!_

"_Yes...that's it, dearest...give me your fear..._"

Naruto glared when the-thing-he-was-sure-was-not-really-Kiba dared to touch his mate's face. _His mate?! Shit! Kyuubi, what the hell?!_

_**It is a shared sentiment, stubborn kit. But for the moment, silence. I am trying to free you to save our mate.**_

Naruto couldn't help but shudder in pleasure at the possessive tone in Kyuubi's growl. Yes. Yes, Sasuke _was_ their mate. He flinched again at another of Sasuke's silent cries for help. _Kyuubi, hurry..._

The old fox growled at his impatience but Naruto was finally taking notice of the other occupants of the room. It seemed that everyone else, with the exception of Sasuke and Kiba, were in the same situation he was in. Already, the nurses and some of his shinobi friends were unconscious from the intense pressure on themselves while the rest were trying their hardest to keep aware. He realized with a start that he could actually breather almost freely and he lent effort to Kyuubi silently.

"_Scream for me...dear heart...fill me with your terror..._"

And Naruto felt his efforts double unconsciously in anger when _the thing_ yanked roughly on Sasuke's dark hair. It was only then that Naruto could see the pale face distorted in his terror – eyes wide and eerily blank even as his pale lips parted in a scream no one could hear. Naruto struggled even more against the force pressed against him. He had to get to Sasuke- He had to- had to--

"Naruto! Sasuke!" the familiar voice, followed by panicked bangs on the door, started Naruto out his swirl of desperation. More panicked calls and powerful slams accompanied the ones before and Naruto had to sigh in relief at the concerned elders outside. The door shook and rattled in their efforts but still refused to budge. Of course, this was all noticed by a coldly irate Kiba-that-was-not-really-Kiba and he turned his strange, milky white pupils to the piece of wood currently separating the room from the outside world.

It was at this opportune moment that Kyuubi and Naruto's efforts pulled through and Naruto suddenly found himself free of the unnatural hold on his body.

_**Take down the crazy pup and save our mate, kid. **_

Naruto growled in response even as the whisker marks on his cheeks grew deep and his snarl grew menacing. _My pleasure..._

Flaming orange chakra suddenly leapt out Naruto's outstretched arm and swept towards the startled _thing_. _It_ barely escaped the angry clutch of the burning chakra and grinned sickeningly at the blond. "_Rubah...I should have known..._" (1)

Naruto felt Kyuubi rear in alarm and grew wary. He wondered about the name _that thing_ had used for the fox. It was possible that, with Kyuubi's reaction, the name actually meant something. His thoughts were cut short when _it_ chuckled. It sent icy shivers down Naruto's spine. He forced himself not to back down when those pitch black eyes with the deadened milky whites stared emptily – yet he felt naked and so, so _petty_ under the unmoving gaze – at him. The gaze shifted to the prone Sasuke and a dark tongue slid out to lick at dry lips in obvious delight. It reminded Naruto of a child looking forward to his candy and he shuddered in disgust.

"_Childe of the Rubah...you had better not be in sight...when I return for my sweetest Sasuke..._"

Naruto froze at the subtle threat before launching himself towards the grinning not-Kiba in a blind rage. But _it_ had already jumped away and with a last chilling laugh, vanished in a strange dark mist. Still seeing red from the thick haze of unreleased anger, it took Naruto a while to notice that the stifling pressure in the closed room had disappeared as well. The loud slam of the battered hospital door and victorious, yet still concerned, cries had him startled back into reality. He spun around with the ability that only ANBU captains could have to wrap Sasuke in a tight embrace.

"Sasuke...it's alright now...Naruto's here..."

The stiff raven in his arms didn't react and for a moment, Naruto was afraid that his mind had shattered even more to the point of no return. Then, he felt the tension in Sasuke's body slowly melt away until Naruto had to tighten his hold so the other would not fall. Pale hands clutched weakly at his shirt and Naruto felt the day's adrenaline go out of him in a sudden rush as he looked down into the unexpectedly lucid obsidian. "N- Naruto...?"

Tears fell from the blond's eyes as he too fell back to cradle the weary and rapidly unconscious raven tenderly. He returned Sasuke's soft smile with a watery one. He barely noticed that there were medics and shinobi running about him or that four of these shinobi were keeping a sharp eye on the two of them and two of the four trying hard to inconspicuously appear calmer than what they were really feeling. He had to lean in to hear the barely audible whisper.

"Y- you kept your promise..." (2)

Then, his eyes fluttered close and he went limp in Naruto's arms. Naruto sobbed even as he smiled into Sasuke's hair. "Of course I did, teme. I _told_ you that Uzumaki Naruto _always_ keeps his promises!"

The blond jerked up at the scent that he would rather not have anything to do with at the moment. A tanned hand twitched as it felt a sticky warmth coat its palm. Large blue eyes became almost dilated at the lines of blood that seemed to be trickling out Sasuke's every open orifice on his face.

"Tsu- Tsunade!"

**To Be Continued.**

* * *

**(1) 'Rubah' is pronounced roo-bah.**

**(2) Refer to Chapter 6 bebez.**

**It's a cliffie! Oh, I feel so evil. **

**But don't worry. I have the next chapter all planned out. Now I only need the determination and aim to finish it...by the day before my baby brother's birthday...this Friday...8th January 2010... (Though at 14, turning 15, my little bro is hardly a baby. Just, uh, perhaps I have a brother compex...? Gah. I'm Itachi.)**

**Heh.**

**BLEARGH.**

**-Asukann**


	9. Chapter 9

**19 June, Saturday. It's my Birthday today! Yayy!**

**More importantly, I've updated. Double yayy!**

**On with the story then!**

**Be My Friend?**

**09**

Naruto was exhausted. He wanted, no – _needed_ – sleep, and it showed in his dark eye bags and haggard face. He had yet to take a shower – even the nurses were steering away from him as they worked – from the day the _thing_ came and took Kiba away. He had refused any and all attempt to get him to leave Sasuke's side. The raven was still unconscious, though Tsunade had said that he was simply asleep and would awake 'anytime soon now'.

Of course, Tsunade had said that almost three days ago and Naruto was starting to lose hope.

And like the past three days, Naruto kept his hand wrapped tightly around Sasuke's limp hand – he had to be certain that Sasuke was breathing and _warm_. Warm was good. Warm meant being alive. His tanned hands brought the paler appendage to a scarred cheek. Sasuke looked peaceful and adorably vulnerable with his dark lashes feathering the top of his pale cheeks. Naruto sighed. He would still prefer seeing life – it didn't matter that it was not really the same anymore – in darker than night orbs, and those slack pale lips turned up in a shy smile.

"Wake up, teme..."

–

Like most of those involved in the 'unspoken incident', Hyuuga Hinata was currently still seated on her hospital bed. She had been awake, though barely, the whole time Naruto had managed to free himself and attempt to attack-

Hinata sighed. She knew that Kiba had been possessed at that time. Kiba – her dear, kind friend that had been forced into a state of child-like innocence – would and could never have uttered such obscene words. It was heartbreaking to hear those words dripping off his lips and Hinata had cried silently as she watched. The effort seemed to have cost her more than just her physical strength.

At present, as was the same with the rest of those 'involved', her chakra was still frighteningly low. It was as though it had been sucked dry in the room. When the elder shinobi finally managed to break down the door, they had been too weak to even sit up. And days after that, they were still recuperating and trying to recover. The medic-nin in the hospital had been puzzled by the phenomenon as they called it; though by the Hokage's expression, she seemed to know more...

"Hinata."

The familiar call brought Hinata out her dark thoughts and she smiled at the older girl. Tenten, in return, frowned at Hinata. "You are having bad thoughts."

Hinata giggled at the unexpected words Tenten had used. Tenten smiled and seated herself on the Hinata's bed. "Tell me."

Hinata sighed again. Tenten was much alike her teammates in her blunt, yet gentle, way with words. At the same time, she was very different from them. For one thing, the other was a girl. This made it very easy for Hinata to 'tell all' to another of the same gender that she took as an older sister than to someone who could not exactly understand the feelings of the opposite sex. "I'm scared, Tenten. And I'm worried..."

"About Kiba."

And Hinata was once again wondering how the older girl could read her as easily as Neji – bless his soul, and may it never be stuck with a destiny that he disliked. She nodded once at the other's not-question. She was left wondering again at Tenten's net words.

"It's not _that_ hard to see, Hinata. You're like an open-book!"

Hinata suddenly felt herself feeling rather choked. Tenten's face turned worried and Hinata wondered why the older girl reached out to bundle her up in a warm hug. "It's okay to cry, Hinata. You've been keeping it in for too long. Let out all your worries."

Hinata wondered again what Tenten was saying. It was only then that she realized the wetness trailing silently down her cheeks. She started and glanced up at Tenten. "I- I'm crying?"

A choked sob escaped her and Hinata found herself hard to breathe. Tenten kept her silence as the younger tried to find the reason for her tears. She smiled softly down when the clouded lavender gaze cleared. "Feel better?"

Sniffling at the needed comfort – someone still cared – Hinata could only nod quietly. For the moment, Hyuuga Hinata, heiress for the infamously mighty and aloof Hyuuga clan, and rumoured most-powerful-Byakugan-user-beside-the-clan-head-himself, let the walls she had built up fall. Someone was still there to support her, as only Hinata and nothing else, and she would relish in it.

* * *

Shikamaru sighed as he patted the back of his girlfriend. He thought that perhaps he knew why she was crying – why she was trembling; why she was clutching so desperately at his shirt; why she was so _scared_ – but then again, he was not really that certain when it came to feelings, much less the feelings of a _female_. No, it was wise to keep his mouth shut until Ino felt comfortable enough to open up to him.

"I'm scared, Shika..."

Shikamaru resisted a smirk. It would not do in such a situation, and besides, this was his girlfriend. His voice was soft and slightly rough from waiting – he had been woken up unexpectedly with an armful of the platinum blonde and had yet to properly drive away his snarky sleepy self, though Ino should have known this, "Wanna tell me?"

There was another sob as she pressed closer to him. "I- I had a nightmare...I saw us...instead of the other teams...it was horrible!"

Shikamaru sighed again. So that was what it was. Shifting slightly, Shikamaru lifted Ino into his lap, wrapping his arms around her slim frame. She wrapped her own arms around him and buried her teary face in his neck silently. "It was just a nightmare, Ino. And I may be selfish about this, but I'm very grateful that through all these, our team never grew apart. I'm grateful that InoShikaChou never had anything as unfortunate as this befall us. I'm grateful that it was Asuma and not me, or Chouji, or even you who had to be the sacrifice. And I'm so grateful, so very grateful, Ino, that I met you, fell in love with you, and still love you through it. So don't- don't feel bad that you are thankful that they had to suffer instead of us. Because I think – no, I _know_ – that s what you feel, Ino."

Ino's arms had tightened almost painfully around him as he let his own thoughts out – his eyes were tearing up only because there was something there, _really_ – and Shikamaru held the girl in his arm s as tightly. They reveled in the comfortable silence and simply being in each other's arms. Still silent, Shikamaru's arm began to move along the sides of his girlfriend's body. Ino sighed and pulled back only press a chaste kiss on his lips. Of course, they being teenagers, it didn't take long for the kiss to turn hot and passionate.

"Um, I'm sorry if I'm interrupting, but its just getting too cold outside."

Pulling apart almost reluctantly, Ino and Shikamaru stared at Chouji guiltily before exchanging a mischievous glance. Chouji began to feel very, very afraid for his well-being. "Uh, maybe I'll just come back in later-"

The two bodies suddenly jumping caught him totally unexpected. He gave a loud cry as the two smaller masses sat atop him. What they did next was mind-bogging for Chouji. Perhaps, if it were only Ino, he would have put it aside as the girl having one of _those_ days. But no; even Shikamaru seemed in on it. The dubbed lazy-ass of the Rookies and of team InoShikaChou, was voluntarily – _Voluntarily!_ Chouji's mind screamed – tackling him and putting all his effort to join his girlfriend in the act of hugging the living daylights out of him and- and-

A loud guffaw of uncontrollable laughter escaped the largest of the trio. He writhed and thrashed as much as he could, but it wasn't exactly possible when two trained Shinobi had him pinned down. Besides, he couldn't really fight them seriously. Especially not when they were only playing. Or _tickling_ him.

"Gah- Gerooff! Bwahaha- Stop it both of you...!"

"Aw, but we _love_ you Chouji!"

"And it wouldn't be _fair_ to leave you out of it."

Their raucous laughter lifted the darkness in the corridors and the medic-nin passing by only shook their heads in fond exasperation at the teens' behaviour. There was nothing wrong with friends just having fun – especially if the fun led to more than a little healing of minds.

* * *

It was almost late afternoon when Sakura found herself in the lush backyard that Konoha Hospital conveniently also dubbed their 'garden'. Despite it all, compared to the sparse surroundings of her temporary room of said hospital, the overgrown garden provided her the needed change for her to compose her thoughts. She sighed as she wrapped her arms about herself.

She was thankful, really, that her teammates were as well as they were with all that had happened. At least they were not dead. Now, if only they were in a proper state of mind, with equally healthy mental capacities, and not as torn about their feelings as well...

Sakura sighed again. Well, the saying _did_ say that you were not to shine your kunai and use it too(1).

Warm, strong arms wrapped around her petite figure and Sakura easily leaned into it. A soft kissed was pressed onto her temple and an equally soft voice, still intense with life and open live for her, whispered into her ear. "I love you."

Sakura giggled and turned in those arms to return the chaste kiss on the man's lips. His tanned face lit up into a blinding smile and Sakura laughed aloud as she wrapped her paler arms around his neck. "I know, Lee. It's a mutual thing, remember?"

They stood that way until the sun fell past the horizon and went in only after the moon had rose high in the sky. Sakura was sure, as she stood in the arms of the man that loved her deeply, that everything would somehow turn out alright. They were the infamous Team Seven after all.

And just maybe, all of them _could_ shine their kunai to use it too.

* * *

Naruto, after much bullying from the sterner, as well as much older and more demanding medic-nin – namely one who also held the position of being the leader of a village – had finally taken a much needed shower. It was something Naruto had thought was unnecessary, what with all that was happening, but it had instead been a refreshing break. He felt more rested and he had had time to sort out his thoughts.

Calmer now – and much, much cleaner – he sat by the familiar white bed to once again wrap his larger tanned hands with Sasuke's pale ones. He wasn't sure what came over him as his mouth spilled his thoughts to the unconscious young man lying prone before him. "Sasuke...I- I like you. And so- so I miss you alright? I want you to wake up and tell me to stop worrying like a silly dobe. Please, Sasuke?"

The expected silence met his short tirade. Naruto sighed and shifted to make himself comfortable for the usual long wait. He froze when the hand he had been entangled in _tightened_. His blue eyes followed the weakly tugging hand up the pale arm, past the white hospital robe, to the equally pale expanse of skin that led up the slightly bobbing Adam's apple, past the pale pink lips – Sasuke was just _pale_ – to a hazy pair of obsidian orbs. Naruto sucked in a surprised gasp. "S- Sasuke."

Those dark eyes blinked slowly – Naruto began to think that he was just dreaming after all – to open tiredly again. "Hn...dobe?"

**To Be Continued.**

**

* * *

**

(1) 'You can't shine your kunai and use it too' – you can say its just the typically twisted so-it-can-fit-a-shinobi-story saying. It comes originally from the well-known saying of 'You can't have your cake and eat it too.' Though I am

_**so **_**tempted to type it as 'You can't cook your kunai and eat it too.' It makes more sense, seriously. You can't eat a kunai right? And that's why.**

**I noticed suddenly as I re-read the chapter that I keep ending Naruto's part with a speech each time. Hm.**

**Ah well. **

**A new chapter in my life is getting all planned out. No. I'm not getting married.**

**- Asukann**


	10. Chapter 10

**Finally. After two years. My muse took that long to go on a break. **

**If you're _still_ here, well done. No words can describe how I feel. X0**

**Dozo.**

* * *

**Be My Friend?**

**10**

Kakashi rushed into his village leader's office, his hitai-ite missing and his tall shirt collar – it also doubled as his mask – barely covering his face. His hair was still mussed in much needed sleep and his clothes rumpled from said sleep. "He's awake?"

Tsunade mused at him for a long moment – the man before her fidgeted horribly as he stood before her, finally realizing in discomfort how he probably looked before the elder – and finally decided to spare him his dignity with a flourishing, "Yes, Uchiha Sasuke is awake."

Once again, Kakashi became the ball of excitement that had bounded into her office. Tsunade sighed. The man had become as bad as one of those pups he liked to summon. Of course, this meant that he would be running off without a second thought-

"Jounin Hatake Kakashi," the full address had him freeze to attention immediately in habit. Tsunade couldn't help the smile on her lips as she watched his rigid posture. "Please present yourself in a proper manner before visiting at least. It is unbecoming of someone of your rank."

There was a sheepish, "Yes, Hokage-sama," and then Kakashi was gone.

* * *

Sakura very nearly punched a hole through her shared apartment with Lee when the messenger came. It was only Lee's strong arms around her that managed to save said messenger's life. The terrified genin, however, only remembered the – _passionate_; well, in his impressionable fourteen-year-old mind – kiss Sakura had pressed on his virgin lips. It was ironic that none of Lee's usual exclamations of youth fell from _his_ lips as he gave the dreamy-eyed youth a hard stare in return. It didn't last long though.

Sakura had pulled him down to give him her real passionate kiss, after all.

* * *

Naruto was content for the first time in his short life. Sure, there were still problems that he had to settle – the most pressing being Kiba's mysterious disappearance – but at the moment he had the person he cared for the most in his arms. It was enough for him. Naruto glanced down at the dark head pressed against his shoulder as it mewled and turned sleepy eyes towards him. "Naruto…?"

"Slept well?" Naruto returned instead and watched with a fond smile as Sasuke nodded, then sighed.

"Hn…don't get too comfortable, dobe. I'm still half-asleep…and tired…and in shock… Of course I would want to—"

"Cuddle?"

A sleepy glare. "Find someone familiar to ground me. Uchiha don't cuddle."

"Of course they don't, teme. 'Cause that's not what you're doing, anyway," Naruto grinned and wrapped his arms around the slightly smaller male. Sasuke barely stiffened and instead leaned into the cuddle – excuse me – familiar hold. "You're still tired. Go back to sleep."

"Hn…"

Naruto watched again as dark eyes fluttered close. The smaller male in his arms shifted once, and then fell still in sleep. Naruto leaned over to press his face into the dark mess of hair and breathed in the scent of Sasuke. Although Sasuke at the moment was not yet truly the prickly Sasuke from their ANBU days together, he was beginning to return to it.

When asked, it seemed that he knew what had happened throughout his 'disability'. He knew that Neji and Shino had died during his last mission, that he had not been of sane mind and that Naruto had been taking care of him afterwards. He knew too of a disembodied shadow coming after him and taking Kiba away. He had understood when Tsunade wanted to keep him still in the hospital for further observations and understood that he was to continue staying with Naruto in case he lapsed back into his previous state. Naruto's hold around Sasuke tightened. Naruto knew that Sasuke would not really be the same Sasuke from before – he would be mellower, softer; more timid – but Naruto would love Sasuke even then.

Naruto's blue eyes widened at the discovery of the warm, protective feelings bubbling up inside him. He- He—

"Is he still sleeping? I thought he woke…?" Kakashi's anxious voice broke through Naruto's storm of thoughts. He blinked his blue eyes dumbly at the older male for a moment, taking in the still wet hair and rushed appearance.

"Uh- Yeah, he did – wake up, I mean – uh, he's uh, asleep again – I mean, he went back to sleep. Yeah. That's what he did."

Kakashi raised his one visible eyebrow in question. "And what's wrong with _you_? Had some life-changing revelation or something?"

Naruto's eyes widened at the direct hit Kakashi had unknowingly given him. He felt his face flush but hoped his tan would hide it – hopefully. "Um, haha, no! What makes you think that? You're funny, Kakashi! Haha. Um."

Kakashi's eye now held a gleam of mischief that made Naruto regret his horrific acting. Naruto could already see his mouth opening under his dark mask—

"Sasuke-kun…!" Sakura's excited voice – as well as the excited slam of the room's door opening – thankfully interrupted further questioning. She bounded into the room but paused as she finally noticed Naruto's frantic attempt to cover the sleeping Sasuke's ears. She apologized sheepishly under Naruto's glare. Lee smiled as he entered at a more languid pace – which was more like a light jog, really – behind his girlfriend.

"Good morning! I see Sasuke's not awake yet despite being told that he was!" Lee stage whispered his greeting and wrapped his arms around Sakura. "Well, since we're awake already, we shall wait patiently."

Naruto forced a grin on his face. It was fine, really, to have familiar faces surrounding the newly revived Sasuke – except that _Naruto _needed some alone time to _think_. And he would not leave his- his—

"Love."

"_No!_"

The room's occupants, which had increased by a meager two with Tenten and Hinata's arrival – which, of course, Naruto had not noticed _at all_ whilst lost in his shell-shocked mind – stared at him in varying states of surprise. The two newcomers looked confused; Sakura and Lee looked quite affronted, though Sakura was more indignant; and Kakashi was amused. Naruto glared darkly at Kakashi. He swore there was a knowing smirk under the stupid mask. He yelped when Sakura knocked him hard over the head. "What the hell was that for, woman?"

Sakura's ire grew at the blond's obliviousness. Tears prickled at the corner of her eyes as her collected emotions from the day began overflowing. "Woman— How _dare_ you! And- And especially after that— If you hated us being together, you could have said so earlier! Y- You idiot!"

Lee wrapped his arms comfortingly around his girlfriend as she began to sniff. His large eyes were disappointed as they stared at him. "Yes, Naruto. It hurts that you are against our love. Although I still regard you as a friend, I cannot see what you have done to my one true love—"

"Why is Sakura crying? What's going on? What happened?" Ino's voice cut across Lee's solemn speech and Naruto was almost grateful. He spied Shikamaru and Chouji edging in behind her, wary of the events happening in the smallish room. He began to regret their coming when the 'truth' was made known. Naruto winced at her tongue lashing about his 'lack of loyalty' – and how did that get there? – eyes growing wide in bewilderment.

"_Wait!_ What's going on? I've never— I mean- I wasn't even thinking about anyone else's love but mine—"

The silence was abrupt. Naruto clamped his mouth shut and began wishing that he was suddenly invisible – he still would not leave Sasuke, after all. Ino's blue eyes, a few shades darker than his own, peered suspiciously at him. "You have no idea what we are talking about, do you?"

Kakashi's highly amused coughing – that was assuredly not infectious – interrupted them. "Maa maa, I think we all understand now that Naruto had been speaking from his mind to _his _heart. Let's leave him alone to figure his thoughts for his newly-found love. Though, I wonder who _he_ may be…"

Naruto glared at the jounin again and cursed the man's sharp intuition. Naruto would have given in to the childish snarl if the body still in his arms had not shifted. He looked down and was lost in the dark eyes staring sleepily up at him. "Why is it so noisy…?"

It was a long time before Naruto found any peace.

* * *

Naruto rubbed the back of his head nervously as he dropped the bag of clothes onto the floor of his small apartment. Sasuke closed the front door and surveyed the place silently. He was familiar with it but it was still the first time he was seeing the blond's house – with his sanity intact. He continued his survey, touching the familiar furniture and just soaking in its warm familiarity, as Naruto cleared his throat.

"Um, this is our- I mean my- uh, well, this is going to be our- ah, your home. Uh, I mean—"

Sasuke smiled at the blond's clumsy attempts at not being awkward. It was rather quaint, really. Sasuke sighed. He must still be rather out of it if his thoughts still ran in that direction. _Then again, with my thoughts full only of the Naruto from my recent memories…I might never be able to return to'normal'._

"It's okay. I don't mind staying with you," his smile became a smirk. "For the time being, at least."

Naruto's sputter of disbelief was enough to quell the growing doubts for the moment. It was now almost two weeks since his discharge and Sasuke was getting rather used to life in the 'Uzumaki household'. He smiled wryly at the domestic name as he served breakfast absently. He scowled suddenly at the thought of himself acting the wife to a lazy husband. "Oi, dobe, hurry your ass…out…"

Sasuke flushed at the sight of the half-naked Naruto leaning casually against the kitchen table. His grin was cheeky as he leaned across the narrow table to grab his plate of scrambled eggs and bacon. "You called for me, sweetheart?"

Sasuke stepped back into the kitchen hurriedly to grab the mugs and coffee. You should never let anything so delicious wait for the coffee. Of course, he meant the eggs and bacon. _Right._

Breakfast was peaceful – Sasuke was starting to get used to Naruto's casual flirting and their overall familiarity towards each other; there were still times when Sasuke would feel lost without Naruto's warm presence, though this mainly happened at night and with decreasing frequency – as was the rest of the day. It was only strange that it was so…_normal_.

And it was only _normal_ to forget about something that should not really exist.

The room was dark, the slitted blinds allowing only the barest of moonlight to pass through. The rays fell across the room's sleeping occupant like an ethereal blanket. Where it fell across the pale skin, the skin seemed to glow. A sudden soft sigh and the restless movements of the rays were the only indications of the teen sitting up. Dark orbs stared out blankly through darker lashes. Someone was calling.

_Come…_

The teen padded softly off his bed and was soon in the living room. He seemed to barely register the cold of the night. His eyes were eerily blank.

…_My sweet…_

His steps were slow even as he reached for the front door. Someone was calling.

_Come to me…_

Pale fingers grabbed the chilled doorknob. The lock had somehow been turned. All he needed to do was to answer—

"What are you doing, Sasuke?"

The dark eyes fluttered into awareness at the warm hands that had so suddenly grabbed his. He blinked again at the tanned hands, it seemed much larger than his paler ones, and looked up to its owner. His eyes mirrored the confusion and absently registered the concern on the blond's face. "Naruto? What—"

Sasuke shivered, aware of how cold he was only then. For once, he didn't push away when the blond wrapped his long arms around him. The larger body was warm and comfortable. It was only when said blond lifted him easily to cradle him protectively did Sasuke curse the other for growing taller and brawnier than him. He still couldn't – and wouldn't – protest though. The blond's hold was secure and Sasuke felt so, so tired…

Naruto smiled softly when he realized that the Uchiha in his arms had actually fallen asleep. As he tucked in the quietly snoring raven he couldn't help but leave a small peck on the pale brow. He was fortunate that the raven was too deep in sleep to notice the intimacy. At the same time, he worried. For Sasuke to still be needing such deep unconsciousness meant that he still lacked healing. Naruto set his lips grimly. He would just have to consult Sakura, or even Tsunade, the coming morning.

So deep he was in his thoughts that he didn't sense the angry glare from just outside Sasuke's window. The stupid blond had stolen its sweet again! But it will get it back.

_Oh yes it will._

**To Be Continued.**

* * *

**Oh, and if you check my profile, you can find some links where I attempted to draw the cover of this story. (And a bit of my other fanfic, _Voices of a Distant Star_.)**

**Just saying.**

**- Asukann**


End file.
